Drifted Sparks Series--Part 2. New Arrivals
by Silver Spider
Summary: As the search for their friends continues, the Maximals discover that their old enemies resurfaced. Two transfer students bring back old friends…and foes.


**Summery: As the search for their friends continues, the Maximals discover that their old enemies resurfaced. Two transfer students bring back old friends…and foes. **

**Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed the first part. I'll be using some songs from time to time. Just for the record, they don't belong to me, I'm not making any money, so don't sue me. Thanks.**

**Drifted Sparks Series**

**Part 2. New Arrivals**

**By: Kayla Anasazi (a.k.a. Silver Spider)**

**Prologue**

     "So, they have discovered another Maximal," the deep voice growled, "Megatron will not be happy when he hears this. Why has nothing been done to prevent this? Tarantulas, you were in charge of this mission. What went wrong?"

     "I don't suppose the name 'Maximals' rings a bell for you," Tarantulas hated answering to the second in command, but for now he had no choice, "Blackarachnia and that lame boyfriend of hers interfered. Plus bat boy Maximized." 

     "You had Quickstrike to aid you," the voice was silent for a moment," 3 against 2 are possible odds and it is always better to go with honor. If it were up to me, you would not even have the honor of being recycled for your failure. Fortunately for you, I am not in command. But do not doubt, Megatron will receive the whole report when he returnees."

     "Don't be too hasty to tell on me to Megatron," Tarantulas said calmly, "part of our mission was successful." 

     "You have located a Predacon spark?" the voice sounded intrigued, "which one?" 

     "Oh I think you of all know him best." Tarantulas started laughing uncontrollably. 

Chapter 1 

     Ariana would have fell asleep at the first chance she got. Her last period class was sooooo boring. She had finished her assignment the fastest and since none of her friends were in this class, she had nothing to do, except watch the clock. After a few long minutes, Ariana came to the conclusion that something was wrong with it. This was Tech class, and if she wasn't one of the best Maximals at this stuff, she might have enjoyed it a bit. But that wasn't the case, so until the end of the day, she was stuck there. Finally, when the clock reached 2:30, the afternoon announcements came on.

     "Attention all students, this is your principal for the afternoon announcements. Spring sports will begin next week. They will be: archery, saucer, baseball, cheer leading, lacrosse, against our better judgment, track (**_Chris is going to love this, Ariana thought), and last but not least, a new addition to the spring sports list, swimming." Then the bell rang. _**

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     After school, many students gathered by the principal's office to check the list of sports. Chris was in the front row, of course, checking what track teams the school would be competing against. 

     "Those guys don't stand a chance," he told Alex who was standing next to him, "not with the golden rocket on our team." He pointed at himself proudly. 

     "A little modesty wouldn't hurt," Ariana said, coming up next to them, "so trying out for track again, huh? Don't you ever get tiered of doing the same thing?"

     "Nope, Cheetor the speed demon never gets tiered," Chris shook his head smiling.

     "What ever you say," Ariana laughed, "So what are you taking, garbage breath?" she directed her attention at Alex. He winced at the remark. 

     "Are you going to do that to me for the rest of my life, _webs?" he asked._

     "I don't know," Ariana pretended to think, "you might work your way up to 'rat face' some day."

     "But not any day soon, considering your current attitude," came another voice behind the crowed. The three turned and saw Justin. He made his way towards them. "Alex, you're doomed to spend your life being called various names by Ariana," he put an arm around her.      "You tell him, Just," Ariana smiled, "so are you here because we are due to be attacked by Preds, the world is going to end, or you can't live withouMt me?"      "Actually, I'm here to tell you guys that Ryan is looking for us," he replied, "but the last thing is true too." 

     "What!?" Ariana pretended to sound disappointed, "No Preds? Not even an Apocalypse? How boring." 

     Alex and Chris exchanged glances and Chris rolled his eyes, "Yuck. Could you guys take this mush some place else?" he begged. 

     At that, Justin snapped back to reality, "Right. For now, Ryan said he had something important to tell us. I sedges we go find him." 

**Chapter 2**

     "So what have you got for us today?" Alex asked, when they finally found Ryan, "Major Pred attack? End of the world?" 

     "Two new students," Ryan replied, "I overheard the principal and counselor talking about two new transfer students."

     "What dose that have to do with us?" Chris asked not getting the point.

     "You think they could be transformers?" Ariana _did get it.  _

     "Exactly," Ryan agreed, "and I was wondering if you could check on them through your lap top."

     "Oh no," Ariana shook her head, "I am _not staying up all night again. Not for two new students. Telatron 1? Okay, but not for such a useless thing."_

     "There's no need to stay up all night," Ryan assured her, "all you have to do is get into their school files and check what they have on them. I also have the name of their old school so you can check that too."

     Ariana sighed, "Last time," she vowed, "this is the last time, Ryan. And if I don't find anything good, they'll never find your body."

     "Whatever. Their names are Devon and Logan. They were transferred from Edwin High, but I didn't catch for what reason," Ryan told her, "you'll be able to find it."

     "Okay now that we have that settled," Chris said, "are any of you trying out for spring sports?"

     "One more thing about spring sports and I'll make you whish you never came on line," Ariana shot at him.

     "Okay, okay, take it easy," Chris put his hands up in self-defense. 

     Ariana shook her head and got up, "I'll go home and check these guys out. See you guys later at the park."

     "When?" Justin asked.

     "I'll call you," Ariana promised. Then she left.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     "So what are we looking at?" Jamie asked when Ariana got through to the student profiles at her school's web site. Jamie climbed up on her bed and starred down at his sister's screen. Ariana, who was sitting on the floor, pointed at a picture one of the students. 

     "We have two new students," she explained, "Ryan wanted me to check on them."

     "He thinks they're Preds?" Jamie asked.

     "No one thinks anything, not until I check them out," Ariana brought up one of the profiles." She read the profile to Jamie.

**Chapter 3**

     "Name: Devon Harris

     Eye Color: Blue

     Hair Color: Black

     Height: 6'

     Weight: 125 lb.

     "Devon was transferred because he got in to trouble a lot. Fights with other students, especially Logan. Also acted up in class." Ariana read.

     "Sounds like either just a troublemaker or another Pred," Jamie put in.

     "Yeah," Ariana thought for a moment, "it also says he was a swimming champion at his old school." 

     "So?"

     "Well…" Ariana was about to say something but stopped, "let's check out Logan."

     "Name: Logan Ray

     Eye Color: Green

     Hair Color: Brown/Red

     Height: 5'11"

     Weight: 130 lb.

     "Logan is a lot like Devon," Ariana told Jamie after reading the profile, "In fact, if I didn't know better, I'd say they're twins. Logan got transferred for the same reasons as Devon. He was also a swimming champion. It seams he and Devon were rivals."

     "I still don't see what the swimming has to do with it," Jamie complained. 

     "Well, you weren't at the Beast Wars so you probably don't know," Ariana said, "But I'm not sure yet. I'll have to talk to the guys about this." She closed her laptop and got up.

     "Where are you going?" 

     "To the park," Ariana said, "which reminds me, I gotta call Justin." She took the phone and sat cross-legged on the bed.

     Jamie started to laugh, "Justin is Ariana's boyfriend, Justin is…" Ariana through a pillow at her brother which shut him up. She dialed and waited for a minuet.

     "Hello?"

     "Hey Just," she said happily, "listen, I just finished checking on the new students." 

     "Find anything interesting?"

     "Yeah, call the guys and tell them to meat me at the park in 15 minutes."

     "Okay. See you then."

     "Bye," she hung up and turned to her brother, "come on Jamie, you're coming with me. Let's get this show on the road." 

     "Did you tell mom that we're leaving?"

     "Yeah she knows. Now come on we don't have forever," They ran down stairs. 

**Chapter 4**

     "So what did you find on them?" Ryan asked, when everyone finally arrived. 

     Ariana told them what she found, "Basically, it's nothing out of the ordinary," she said, "but their attitude towards each other and other people reminded me of two other people we knew during the Beast Wars. The fact that their both swimming champions also pointed in that direction."

     "So there's a good chance they're Predacons," Justin said.

     "No," Ariana shook her head, "if what I suspect is true, one of them is a Pred but the other is a Maximal."

     "Who are you referring to?" Justin asked.

     "Depth Charge and Rampage," Ariana said, "it all fits in. The swimming, the constant fights, the rivalry. If it isn't them, I don't know who it could be." 

     "You know you maybe right," Ryan nodded, "we have characteristics of our Maximal selves as well. Like Chris with the track. I think that it may be the case for the others too."

     "So what is Optimus going to be?" Alex joked, "a lecturer at a university?" everyone laughed.

     "Could someone please tell me who are we talking about," Jamie pleaded. 

     "We're talking about two transformers with major attitude problems," Alex replied with a humph. 

     "Depth Charge and Rampage were in constant battle with each other," Ryan gave a more detailed description, "Rampage had an indestructible spark and was, in fact, created by Maximals. Even though he was brilliant, he was hopelessly treacherous. One time he had attacked a Maximal colony. No one survived. As fait had it, that was the colony Depth Charge was from. At that time, Depth Charge was away on a mission. When he came back and saw what happened, he vowed to hunt down Rampage and kill him. When Rampage entered the Beast Wars, Depth Charge wasn't far behind."

     "Plus when it came to following Optimus' orders," Alex added, "Fish face was worse than your sister." Ariana elbowed him in the side for that.

     "Okay," Jamie nodded, understanding, "I can see how that works. But what dose the swimming have to do with it?" 

     "They both had a sea creature as a beast form," Chris said, "Depth Charge was a sting ray and Rampage was a crab."

     "Do you have any idea which one's which?" Justin asked Ariana.

     "With those two it's all but impossible to tell," Ariana shook her head, "We'll have to check both out in person at school. Also I'm sure they'll join the swim team so we'll hear some more about them."

     "Fine," Chris was the first to get up, "for now I say we wait until tomorrow and find someplace to eat now, I'm starving."

     "I'm all for,' Alex agreed, "Let's go." Everyone else agreed and they left the park. 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     The person who had been watching them, stepped out from behind a tree. His powerful arms were crossed over his blue T-shirt. Blue jeans and black sneakers covered his equally powerful legs. 

     **_So there are others like me, he thought, _****_It was no exceeding that I found the journal that told me of my true nature. Those six are just like me and they seem to know what's going on. Most important of all they know who I am. Perhaps I should follow them and hope they have more information._**

**Chapter 5**

     "If I didn't know better I'd say you six fell of the edge of the Earth," the waitress said. She was about to take the tray with last plate of fries away, when Chris took it down off the tray.

     "Uh-uh," he said with his moth full.

     The waitress raised an eyebrow, "Where ever you've been, you sure brought back an appetite." 

     "Thank you," Chris called after her. 

     "Seems like the best meal ever," Justin took another fry.

     "Well, when you're hungry, anything tastes good," Ariana said. She looked at the entrance and her eyes narrowed, "Uh-oh," she leaned forward and whispered, "Transfer student at 2 o'clock."

     Everyone got the message. Since Ariana, Chris, and Justin where facing the doorway, they could see what was going on. They watched.

     The boy ordered a milkshake and sat alone at a table across from their table. It didn't appear like he was doing anything but sipping his milkshake. Once he did glance in their direction, through. That was enough. Jamie caught it.

     "He's looking at us," Jamie whispered. 

     "Hush," Ariana quieted him.

     "Guys, I know we're not finished," Alex said, "but I think it's time to make tracks." 

     "I second that," Chris nodded.

     Trying to act as casual as possible, they left. Once they were outside, everyone exhaled a long held breath. Chris was the first to speak.

     "Speak of the devil," then he turned to Ariana, "Which one was that?"

     "Devon Harris."

     "What do you think he was there for?" Jamie asked, "to spy on us?"

     "Looked to me like he was just having a snack," Justin said, "isn't it possible that we're over reacting? I mean he _is human." _

     "Well, if he _was spying on us," Ryan pointed out, "it would mean that he was a Predacon. If he carried a Maximal spark, he wouldn't know it who he was."_

     "So what do we do?" Jamie asked, "if Devon is Rampage, Logan must be Depth Charge. We've got to get to him before the Preds do."

     "Jamie's right," Chris agreed, "we should look for him."

     "It may be wiser to wait till tomorrow," Justin said, "I mean, we see them in school anyway. It'll give us a chance to talk to both."

     "Both?" Chris repeated, "Hello, Bolts! Didn't we just decide that Devon was Rampage? What do you think he'll do at school, politely talk to us?"

     "He won't be polite," Ariana guarantied, seeing that neither boy would give in, "but I don't think anything bad will happen. I mean, the Preds are just as interested in keeping their human identities a secret. From the other students anyway."

     Chris looked at Ryan, Jamie, and Alex to see if they agreed with Ariana and Justin. Unfortunately for him, their looks confirmed his suspicions.

     "Sorry Chris," Alex sighed, "I don't usually agree with her, but Ariana's right. It's a waste of time to look for him now."

     Ariana raised an eyebrow, "Wow Alex. Not only do you agree, but you call me by my real name. I'm faltered."

     "Don't let it get to you're head, webs," Alex snorted.

     Justin laughed and hugged her, "And here you were hopping." 

     Jamie, Chris, and Alex made faces. Ryan just shook his head.

     "This is so nauseating," Alex said.

     "Yuck," Jamie stuck his tong out.

     "Take it somewhere else," Chris begged.

     Ariana looked up at Justin and a smile tagged at the side of her lips, "You know what? I think we will. It's getting too crowded for my liking. Ryan," she turned to her friend "do me a favor and take Jamie home. Justin and I will have some time alone and won't appreciate being bothered."

     "What do you have in mind?" Justin asked.

     "Any time to our selves would be great," Ariana put her arms around his neck, "I know we'll have a great time. You're such a romantic." 

     "I'm enchained to agree with you. Let's go," Justin said.

     "This is getting to smug for me," Ryan let out a sigh, "come on Jamie, looks like your sister doesn't feel like having any of us around."

     "Who would want to be here," Jamie muttered, "let's go home."

     The two groups separated. When they were out of earshot, Alex finally spoke. "You know after 4 million years, the only thing that hasn't change is those two." 

**Chapter 6**

     "That was nice," Justin looked back at the other group, "You have quite a knack for getting rid of them.

     "It's an art," Ariana grinned, "I have practiced it over the years."

     "So what do you want to do? Movie?"

     "Sure, we'll see what we wand to watch when we get there. Come on," Ariana pulled him. 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     After the movie, Ariana and Justin decided to take the long way back to her house. It was 11:30 p.m. but Ariana wasn't worried about getting in trouble. Her mom was out of town on a business trip.

     It wasn't dark night. The sky was full of bright stars without a single cloud in sight. There was a huge, pail moon that hung low in the sky. The perfect night for a romantic walk, Ariana thought. She giggled and squeezed Justin's hand.

     He felt it, "What's on you're mind, my lady," he asked, letting his Silverbolt self show through.

     "Nothing in particular. I was just thinking that this is a great place and I'm glad I'm here with my favorite person,' she smiled up at him.

     "I'm honored," Justin replied.

     "You should be. Now that I know who I am," Ariana said, "my attitude has changed. There are few people I like…or tolerate."

     "Like Alex?"

     "Especially Alex. You know, he annoyed me before. I guess now we know why. We never got along in the past and it looks like never will. I met him through Ryan and Chris in the first place. They're okay."

     Justin was about to say something but they already got to her house. "I guess it's till tomorrow," he touched her cheek gently, "good night, my love."

     "Good night," still neither left. Neither could force themselves to go. Ariana lifted her face up to his. For a moment, both lips move wordlessly not knowing if they were looking for the right words or just the right thing to do. He put his arms around her waist and brought her closer to him. Their lips touched for a split second which seemed to last a lifetime. Then for another second. Then longer. It was the sweetest, gentlest kiss ever. For a moment, they were completely unaware of anything in the world around them. 

_"Every endless night has a dawning day_

_Every darkest sky has a shining ray_

_And it shines on you, baby can't you see_

_You're the only one who can shine for me,"_

     They were in the third war of their lives. Both were on both sides of the fighting and neither ever gave up on the other. But, sometimes both felt like their love was the only thing keeping them together. Their love had survived betrayals, anger, hate, and even Death it self. Surly it would survive this. They hoped. But sometime hope itself goes very far. Such was the case.

_"It's a private emotion that fills you tonight_

_And a silence falls between us_

_As the shadows steal the light_

_And wherever you may find it_

_Wherever it may lead_

_Let your private emotion come to me"_

     Their lips parted. Neither wanted to let go, but now they knew they had to. Justin took a few steps back, his hands still holding Ariana's. A few more small steps and only their fingertips touched. A few more, and he was gone into the night.

_"When your soul is tired and your heart is weak_

_Do you think of love as a one way street_

_Well it runs both ways, open up your eyes_

_Can't you see me here, how can you deny,"_

     Ariana stood at the front steps for a few more minutes. The night had suddenly turned cold. She put her arms around herself, since Justin wasn't there to do it, and went back inside. 

     Up stairs, she first went into her brother's room. Jamie was asleep. Ariana smiled and closed the door. She then walked to her room. **_Might as well go to bed too, she thought. She suddenly realized she was tiered. Well it was after all past midnight. So after a warm shower and changing, Ariana turned off the lights. _**

**Chapter 7**

     Next day at school was just as boring as the day before. Ariana strode lazily into 6th period computer class. It was just as boring as Tech. Again, because of her Maximal identity, Ariana already knew that stuff. 

     She sat down in front of her computer and stretched. After they were finished the day's lessons, the students were allowed to go on-line and do stuff. Since she was always finished first, Ariana had plenty of time. 

     When the lesson was about to start, the door opened and Martin Scott walked in. He was an interesting individual, powerful looking with a dark complexion,  black hair and unusual gray eyes. Unusual, because he was African-American. He had been Ariana's computer partner since the beginning of high school, and she was quite used to his proud, silent attitude.

     For the past few weeks, though, he had been acting strangely. Usually, Martin would be quiet but still fun to work with. Now he hardly spoke to her at all. Ariana briefly wondered if his mood change had anything to do with the war she was in. But after a thought, she dismissed it. 

     He sat down next to her, logged on, and started working. Again with the silence, Ariana thought. She decided to start the conversation. 

     "So," she said casually, "how'd you do on the math final?"

     "Okay," he replied, "got a B."

     "Same here," Ariana was a bit defeated by the simple answer. 

     A quarter hour later, Martin and Ariana both finished their work and went on line. Ariana didn't have anything she needed to do so she just looked at various web sites. Martin, on the other hand, looked like he was working on something very important. Ariana glanced in his direction, but his screen was turned away from her. That hadn't happened before either.

     "What are you doing?" she asked.

     Martin jumped at the sound of her voice. "Nothing," he said quickly. 

**     _If it's nothing then why can't I see?__ Ariana thought, but out loud she just said, "Fine."_**

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     The last bell rang and the student field out of the classes. Ariana ran to the locker area to find the others. She hadn't seen either of the new students and wondered if the others had. But when she finally found them, it turned out that no one had seen either student. 

     "Maybe their just absent," Chris suggested on their way outside. 

     "Both in the same day?" Ariana chuckled, "come on guys, you know me, there are two things I don't believe in. One is coincidence." 

     "And the other?" Justin asked.

     "That Tarantulas ever gets a dose of morality," she grinned. 

     "I agree with you on the last," Ryan nodded, "but it maybe just a coincidence. I mean,  we just had our first finals. It's very likely they just decided to play hooky." 

     Ariana looked disappointed, "But I was right about Tarantulas." 

     "Absolutely," Justin assured her.

     "Good. So what do we do now?" she asked, "wait till tomorrow?" 

     "Looks like the most reasonable option," Alex nodded.

     "Right," Chris agreed and if there's any trouble before then, we'll know it." 

     "Okay  then, we just call it a day," Ryan said, "I for one will be glad to get home." 

     "Me too," Ariana agreed, "after those finals, I'll even be glad to see Jamie."

     "Then it's settled," Justin concluded, "we'll see each other tomorrow, if not sooner."

     Everyone split up from there. When Ariana got home, she spent the rest of the time online searching for anymore relevant information for the war. By 12:06, she finally decided that whatever it was would have to wait till tomorrow.

**Chapter 8**

     She woke up at a beeping sound. At first she thought it was her alarm. Ariana soon realized that the beeping was coming from her computer. She slid out of bed and grabbed it. Yawning, she lifted the top. 

     And stared straight into Ryan's face. Surprised at first, Ariana soon remembered that her friend was just as good as she was at this stuff. 

     "Two questions, Rya," she said in a sleepy voice, "first, why not use the phone? Second, why are you calling me at…" she looked at her alarm clock, "3:30 in the morning? Better be a really good reason, like the end of the world, otherwise I won't be happy. "

     "I assure you it is a matter of the most importance," he replied, "Devon and Logan showed themselves."

     "At 3:30 in the morning?!"

     "Yes. The Predacons ganged up on one of them, I assume it's Depth Charge. He needs our help."

     "What do you suggest I do?! Get up and leave in the middle of the night, go to the school, and fight Preds?!"

     "You have to, for Depth Charge's sake."

     "We're doing a lot of for-Depth-Charge's-sake lately," she muttered. 

     "I'm calling Chris and Alex, since I have their numbers," Ryan ignored the remark, "you call Justin and get him over here."

     "Okay, okay, but I'll need a few minutes to get myself together. I'll meet you there in 30 minutes."

     "Fine. Bring Jamie with you, we might need his help."

     "Do I have to?"

     "Yes."

     "Okay so I wake up Jamie, call Justin, get to school," Ariana listed, "gotch ya. See you there," she broke the link.

     Ariana yawned again, She stumbled into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face. Confident that she wouldn't collapse into sleep, she walked back into her room, took the phone and dialed Justin.

     After she explained the situation, Justin said that he would get on it right away. After that, Ariana woke Jamie who was not the least bit happy about that.

     "Where are we going in the middle of the night?" he insisted.

     "Well, I hope you're up for some action because the new students have shown themselves. We have to get to my high school." 

     Jamie sighed. "Just let me wake up and I'll be right with you."

**Chapter 9**

     When Ariana and Jamie got to the school, Ryan, Alex, and Chris had already arrived. 

     "Why aren't we going in?" Jamie asked.

     "Well, two reasons actually," Ryan replied, "first of all, we're waiting for Justin. Second, we can't seem to get in. Try."

     "Ariana walked up the steps to  the door and reached for the handle. Instantly, a force field came up and around the school building. She pulled back her hand as a jolt of electricity from the force field shocked her. She cursed under her breath and came down the steps.

     "I've scanned the inside," Ryan said, "there are three Predacon signatures and two humans."

     "Well, I guess the two humans are Devon and Logan," Jamie said, "but how did we get three Preds. I thought we only had Quickstrik and Tarantulas to worry about."

     "They must 've found another," Alex sighed, "we're all gonna…"

     "Shut up, Alex!" chorused around him, and oddly enough, he did. 

     "What do your scanners say about the force field?" Ariana asked.

     "Not much," Ryan shook his head, "the system is a lot like 'Sentinel'."

     " 'Sentinel?' " Jamie frowned. 

     "That's right, you don't know. 'Sentinel' was our old shield for the 'Axalon', our old ship during the Beast Wars," Ryan explained.

     "Yeah and look what happened to the 'Axalon': it's in itty-bitty little pieces under water," Alex muttered. 

     "Actually that's a plus," Ryan explained, "during that time, the Predacons took it down using heavy fire power. I believe we can do the same here."

     "Big bot would really come in handy right about now," Chris sighed.

     "We'll live without him," Ryan said, "though Optimus' fire power would be a big help, I have another idea."

     "And what's that?" Jamie asked. 

     "You."

     "Huh?"

     "You can drain part of the force fields power, while the rest of us use fire power."

     "Then let us seek and destroy the enemy," everyone looked up and saw Silverbolt glide down to the ground. 

     "Hey, Bowser-boy! Perfect timing," Alex exclaimed, he turned to the others, "a few of his mussels and the Preds will be blown out of the water."

     "Right, in that case," Chris transformed, "let's shred some Pred!"

**Chapter 10**

     The shield was strong. It held out for a half an hour before shattering under Maximal fire. Once they were inside, Rhinox stopped and gave the signal to be quiet. 

     "Okay, there are six of us and four levels in the school. Cheetor, take level four. Silverbolt, level three. Blackarachnia and Nightscream, level two is all yours. Rattrap, you and I are on the first level, "set your scanners to look for Predacons. Don't fight unless you have to, call for back up if necessary, and if you run into one of the new students, call the rest of us. Okay, spread out."

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     "Wouldn't it be easier to look for them as humans?" Nightscream asked.

     "And use what?" Blackarachnia mocked, "At least this way we have scanners," she clicked on hers, and stopped, "wait a cycle."

     "What is it?"

     Blackarachnia clicked on her scanner again and shook her head, "I thought I picked up a Predacon signature, but I guess it was just a glitch in my systems. Come on."

     "Wait," Nightscream grabbed her arm, "I don't know what glitch you're talking about, but someone's coming." 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     "Here Predy, Predy, Predy," Cheetor held his gun at the ready as he walked through the halls. When he reached an intersection, something caught his eye. Something that sparkled gold and blue. It posed for a second then turned to the left.

     "Hey! Wait!" Cheetor ran after it.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     Silverbolt was having a hard time using his tracking ray in the building. It was a long range scanner and didn't work well there. Even though Justin lived in a city for most of his human life, his true Maximal self, Silverbolt found it strange to be walking through a school hallway which, above all, seemed to narrow for his wings. 

     Then, a shadow in front caught his attention. Silverbolt let out a deep growl and readied himself. Missals loaded and sword in hand, Silverbolt stepped forward. The shadow came again, and this time not only a large body but eight long streaks. Silverbolt immediately understood and ran after it. 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     "What did you see, Nightscream?" Blackarachnia asked.

     "Someone's coming this way," Nightscream replied, in a hushed voice, "but it's too small to be a transformer. Probably one of the new students we're looking for. Quick, change back, we don't want to scare him." 

     They changed back and waited. When the figure got closer, Ariana recognized it. 

     "That's not one of the new students,' she whispered to her brother, "that's Martin Scott, a student from my computer class. Wonder what he's doing here," she came out of the shadows.

     "Martin. Hey it's Ariana, over here," she called, completely fearless. Jamie wasn't so brave. He hid behind his sister. Martin's tall, dark look scared him.

     "Ariana," he didn't seem surprised to see her.

     "Martin, it's dangerous here," she said hastily, "you shouldn't be here."

     "Why are you here, Ariana?" Martin questioned, "it's past school hours."

     "I have business here," she replied.

     "So do I," he said dryly, "and I assure you, you wont like it."

     "What are you talking about?"

     "This," he closed his eyes, "Dinobot, TERRORIZE!"

     Ariana was completely paralyzed by the surprise, but Jamie saw it coming and reacted with lightning speed.

     "Nightscream, MAXIMIZE!"

     Ariana also snapped out of her trance. Still a little shocked by the betrayal, she steadied herself.

     "Alright. If you wanna play it that way…Blackarachnia, MAXIMIZE!"

**Chapter 11**

     Cheetor ran like the wind after his pray. Once the Predacon was in range, he pounced. 

     And landed face flat on the floor. It was embarrassing, of course, but Cheetor turned out lucky after all. His target couldn't resist a moke. 

     "Now who's the loser, Maxi," Quickstrike came out, laughing.

     Cheetor was furious now. From his position on the floor, he grabbed his gun and fired. It only took a few shots to bring Quickstrike down. Cheetor got up and dusted himself of.

     "Good riddance," he said and fired one last shot.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     Silverbolt followed his target like a shadow. Silent, unseen but he was always there. He would not let him get away. Especially this one. 

     "Stop!" he yelled.

     The shadow flinched. It seemed he recognized Silverbolt's voice. It started running faster.

     Silverbolt realized he had a problem on his hands: his target traveled faster on foot then he did and the hall was not wide or high enough for him to fly. He had one last chance: the missiles. 

     He fired. 

     The two missiles traveled down the hall, crossing each others paths and leaving smoke trails behind themselves. A second before they hit their target, they lit up his face. Silverbolt was slightly amused to see the shear terror on Tarantulas' face. Then the missiles exploded.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     Dinobot fired his eye laser at Nightscream and Blackarachnia. They ducked at the last moment in opposite directions so it exploded behind them. A cloud of dust came up where the laser hit, blocking vision. Blackarachnia took the opportunity to set her trap. 

     Dinobot scanned the area. He walked slowly and quietly, listening to every sound. Suddenly, a high pitched shriek from the other end of the hallway caught his attention.

     "The rodent is near," Dinobot said to himself. He scanned the area and confirmed his suspicions. Nightscream was there, "You will not escape," Dinobot promised and ran towards the other end.

     And right into a giant web. He struggled to get free, but couldn't. Blackarachnia jumped down on the other side of the web and gave him an I-can't-believe-you-fell-for-that smile. Nightscream landed beside her.

     "The web is tightly secured so he'll be here until one of his friends can free him," she said. 

     "I checked the rest of the floor," Nightscream informed her, "there's no one here, human or Predacon. All's quiet." 

     "Good, let's hope it stays that way," Blackarachnia replied, "I'm going up to the third level to see if Silverbolt found anything. You go up to the fourth floor and see what Cheetor is up to. See you soon." Nightscream nodded and flew out the window. Blackarachnia waited till he left and headed up stairs.

**Chapter 12**

     The third floor hall was a mess. The statue of an old principal was broken in two pieces and on the floor. Photos, pictures, and banners were either hanging sideways or on the floor as well. The lights were flashing off and on.

     Silverbolt was standing on the other end of the hallway, facing Tarantulas, who was plastered on the wall. Blackarachnia couldn't help but laugh at how pathetic the other spider was.

     "I trust you didn't have any trouble with tall, dark, and ugly here," she said to Silverbolt. 

     "Everything is well up here," the fuzor nodded, "any trouble downstairs?" 

     "Just Dinobot," she shrugged, "but Nightscream and I took care of him so he's out of commission for now. Let's go see how the other's are doing." Silverbolt agreed and together they left the third floor.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     "So I take it we don't have to worry about no-brains over there," Nightscream nodded in Quickstrikes direction. 

     "You bet," Cheetor looked very proud of himself. He turned and faced Nightscream, "I guess things went well downstairs. Any trouble?"

     "Not much. Let's just say Blackarachnia and I kicked Dino-butt," he grinned. 

     "In that case, let's see if we can make it to two parties tonight," the other said.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

     Down on the bottom level, Rhinox and Rattrap were dealing with a different problem.

     "I've just received messages from the others," Rhinox informed his companion, "they have fought Tarantulas, Quickstrike, and Dinobot."

     "Chopper-face?" Rattrap sounded like he missed him, for a second. 

     "The Transmetal 2," Rhinox reminded him.

     "Oh right," Rattrap snapped back to attention.

     "Which means that, unless there are more Preds (and I doubt that)," Rhinox said, "Devon and Logan must be on our level. Scan for a Predacon and a Maximal spark, ignore ones we already know."

     "Gotch ya," Rattrap did as he was told. Seconds later, two unidentified sparks did indeed appear on opposite ends of the hallway. "Alright! We've got a Maximal spark to the left and a Predacon to the right. Both are in human form and moving towards us."

     "Nice work. Now let's go find Depth Charge. And do it in human form," Ryan ran to the left. At the crossing of another hallway, he stepped into the shadows.

     "What's the problem?" Alex asked when he caught up with Ryan.

     "I saw his face," Ryan replied, in a whisper, "that's not Logan! It's Devon. Are you sure you picked up the right spark?"

     "Yeah. It was a Maximal spark," Alex insisted. 

     "In that case, we may have made a big mistake."

**Chapter 13**

     By this time, Devon had reached the crossing. He looked around. "I know someone's here. Show your selves."

     Alex and Ryan exchanged looks. This did sound like Depth Charge; same rude, persistent attitude.

     "So what do we do?" Alex asked in a whisper.

     "I guess we come out," Ryan shrugged, "we can always Maximize if we make a mistake. Come on." He came out into the open. Devon noticed him immediately. He tensed but remained looking strong.

     "Who are you?" he demanded.

     "First you tell us who you are," Ryan replied, calmly.

     "My name is Devon Harris but lately, I'm not sure that's all I am."

     "So what else would you be?" Ryan questioned. Did Devon really know of his Maximal identity? If so, how? They hadn't told him, then who did? Or what?

     "You'll find his a little hard to swallow," Devon promised. Ryan and Alex crossed their arms over their chests and looked hard at him.

     "Try us," Alex dared him.

     Devon took in a deep breath. "Well, it all happened a week before I got transferred…I went diving in a near by lake. Scuba equipment was sate of the art. It let me stay under water for hours. Once, I decided to go down to the very bottom. What I found was amazing.

     "There was wreckage everywhere. It looked like an old space ship but not that any human created. As far as I could tell, it was called the "Axalon." Anyway, I managed to get inside. There was all kinds of stuff: a control room, engine room, sleeping quarters. One of the doors was open so I decided to come in.

     "It was a sleeping quarter. There was a bed, computers, and military maps. I guessed it was the room of some military leader. Then I started looking around the desk and found a book. Well, not exactly a book. It was actually a book with an audio tape in it. I started listening to it, and after a while, concluded it was the leaders journal.

     "It was an unbelievable, but incredible story. It told of two transformer groups, the Maximals and Predacons, and the Beast Wars that they fought 4 million years ago. After the part on the Beast Wars, it told of the Techno-Organic war on their home planet of Cybertron. The Maximals lost.

     "Their leader, Optimus Primal, forced their sparks to come back to Earth and be reborn as humans. But the same happened to the Predacons. So the Maximal children would be able to regain their memories and armor, should anything come up. And it looks like it did," Devon eyed them, "you are two of the Maximals, aren't you?"

     "So are you," Ryan pointed out, certain that he was right.

     Devon nodded, "Depth Charge, MAXIMIZE!" 

     "Hey! Fish-face! _Almost nice to have you back," Alex joked, and slapped Depth Charge on the back, then winced as his hand hit the metal._

     "Hold it," Rhinox, who had Maximized, held up his hand, "my scanners just told me that the other one just transformed. And it's a Pred." 

**Chapter 14**

     "Rampage," Depth Charge half said half whispered.

     "Don't worry, the others are coming," Rhinox placed a hand on Depth Charge's shoulder.

     "No," he shrugged it off, "he's mine."

     "Oh no," Rattrap shook his head in disbelief, "not again! After million years! Can't you forgive and forget?"

     "Never," Depth Charge dashed off after Rampage. 

     "Rhinox and Rattrap stood there in silence. Rattrap was the first to speak, "You sure bringing him back was a good idea?"

     "His attitude is most unfortunate," Rhinox agreed, "but we need everyone we can get. Come on, we should still help him."

     "Why? I'm all for letting crab-legs rip him apart," Rattrap muttered.

     "Rattrap, NOW!" he winced. You couldn't argue with Rhinox when he was like that. They ran after Depth Charge. When they finally caught up with him, he looked all ready for battle. 

     "I don't need or want your help," he told them.

     "You're part of the team, Depth Charge and Maximals don't abandon their own," Rhinox said.

     "Though it's tempting," Rattrap muttered. 

     "You wanna help? Leave." Depth Charge ground, "but if you insist on tagging along, the reading is that way," he pointed further down the hall.

     "Well noticed," came a maniacal voice. The three Maximals whirled as Rampage stepped into view, "and soon it shall be the only spark still pulsating," he raised his triple cannon.

     "Oh spare me the lecture," came Blackarachnia's voice. She swung down from one of the pipes on the ceiling and planted a hard kick right in the monster's face. Rampage stumbled back and fell. He opened his eyes and came face to face with Depth Charge's gun.

     "Light's out," he said and fired. Rampage fell back. This time, he didn't rise.

     The Maximals all breathed a sigh of relief. It was over…for now. By that time Cheetor, Nightscream, and Silverbolt arrived as well. Everyone changed back into their human forms and looked around. 

     "I think we can all sleep well tonight," Ariana finally said, "and tomorrow morning. School would probably be closed for repairs." Everyone chuckled except for Devon and Jamie.

     "You're lucky," Jamie said, "next time we fight in my school."

     "Relax," Ariana hugged her brother, "Mom's not home and I'll give you the day off. You had a hard night, plus you did okay with Dinobot up there."

     "Okay?" Jamie looked disappointed, "I was great!"

     "Fine. You were great," Ariana agreed. 

     "You all did alright," came Devon's voice, "but this war is far from over. So don't start celebrating just yet," he turned to walk away, "See you later." The rest watched until he was swallowed by the shadow of the hall. 

     After a moment of silence, Alex finally shrugged and spoke, "Well, what else did you expect from him?"

**Epilogue**

     School was indeed closed the next day. Roamers that robbers broke in were going around. They were started by none other then Chris and Alex, who would chuckle whenever they heard someone talk about it. 

     The six walked calmly in the park. Devon hadn't come even though they invited him. It was a pleasant spring afternoon. After getting ice cream for Jamie, they sat down under the shade of the trees. After some laughter and group conversations, they quieted down. Jamie was finishing his ice cream, which had gotten all over his face. Justin and Ryan were talking quietly about something. Alex were engaged in their own conversation. Ariana sat by herself and wrote in her journal. When she finished, she closed it and got up. 

     "Well, I'm bored," she told the others, "how about movies and popcorn back at my house?" 

     "Mom's gonna kill you," Jamie pointed out with a smile on his ice cream covered face.

     "What mom doesn't know, can't hurt her," Ariana said, "or us."

     "Okay, let's go," they all got up and started walking.

     Justin took a few steps them bumped into something. He frowned, then bent down and picked it up. It was Ariana's journal. The cover was plain and had doodles on it. First there was a large, black spider web in the middle of the cover. In the middle of the web was a silver lightning bolt. The blank spots had hearts with "Blackarachnia & Silverbolt, 4 ever," or "Ariana & Justin, 4 ever" in them. 

     Justin grinned to himself. He didn't open the book of course. That would've been undignified, but it wasn't his fault if he saw the cover. He ran to the others. Wordlessly, he handed the book back to Ariana. She didn't accuse him of anything. Ariana just smiled and received it.

     "Come on," she said, "let's catch up with the rest."

To be continued in Part 3. "After the Storm"…


End file.
